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How to Attract More Clients to Your Salon

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You’ve probably assembled the best possible team of experienced hairstylists and beauty specialists for your salon. You may have even found the best possible location.

But how can you attract more clients to your salon?

As with any business, marketing can often be the biggest challenge in running a salon. There are various marketing channels available and there’s no guarantee for success with each channel. Simply put, where should we start?

In this guide, we will discuss some actionable marketing tips you can use for booking more customer appointments for your salon. Let’s explore these tips in more detail.

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1. Have a Strong Online Presence

Even if a salon is traditionally a brick-and-mortar business, in this digital age no business can afford not to have a strong and consistent digital presence.

Most clients these days learn about new places, including salons, from Google or social media. If you are not available there, they’ll simply move on to your competitors.

While digital presence is a pretty deep subject on its own, here are the key areas to consider:

Claim and Optimize Your Google My Business Listing

This is important so your salon will appear on Google Maps and “near me” search queries. Include accurate and complete information: address (and directions), contact information, business hours, and so on. Also, include attractive and well-taken photos. Optimize your listing for local SEO.

Build a Professional Website for Your Salon

It’s crucial to understand that social media profiles, even if you have a lot of followers, are not a direct replacement for a professional website. There are tools like Wix, Weebly, and the handy WordPress you can use to create a high-quality website with ease. What’s more, don’t forget to make online bookings available on your site.

You can do this by integrating a professional salon scheduling software like Bookeo into your website. With any booking, Bookeo will automatically sync the appointment with your and your client’s calendar, streamlining the online booking process and eliminating issues like no-shows and double booking.

Leverage Social Media

Obviously, nowadays when everyone is active on social media, it would only make sense to promote our salon there. Create and optimize accounts on relevant platforms like Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and even LinkedIn. You may also want to consider the paid options offered by these platforms, as well as working with relevant influencers on the platform.

Encourage Clients to Review Your Salon

Most of us check online reviews before purchasing products or using services. One of the keys to booking more customer appointments for your salon is to make sure you get more positive reviews from your existing clients.

You can offer incentives. For example offer a 10% discount on their next visit if customers leave a review on your Google Maps and mention your salon on Instagram.

2. Leverage Local Marketing

Don’t forget to go back to your roots. Even in this age of digital marketing, traditional local marketing to engage the local community is still very important.

You can:

  • Join local expos and trade shows, they are great for building new partnerships and meeting new potential clients.
  • Partner with non-competing (or in some cases, competing) businesses in your area. For example, if you don’t offer nail art, you can promote a nearby nail art shop that doesn’t offer your services. They can also promote yours to their clients.
  • Join a social cause. Not only can working with local charities can help that cause, but it can also help in attracting new clients to your business. Not to mention, it’s always great to help others.

3. Be Creative with Seasonal Promotions

Most salons often benefit from seasonal promotions and discounts.

For instance, many clients would want to look their best before a romantic Valentine’s Day dinner. By offering a special Valentine’s Day promotion you can attract existing customers as well as new customers in the area.

However, you can be creative with this. You don’t have to limit seasonal promotions to obvious occasions like Christmas and Valentine’s Day. For example, you can create special promotions and partner up with wedding organizers in your area during the wedding season. You should also leverage the fact that students may need new hairstyles after the summer holiday.

4. Use Well-Taken Photos as Your Weapon

As a salon business, you should definitely emphasize visual assets as the core of your marketing efforts. Ask the client’s permission and always attempt to take pictures of your work. You can use these well-taken photos for your social media posts, as well as for other promotions.

If you have an Instagrammable area in your salon, turn it into a selfie spot. Then encourage your clients to share their photos online while mentioning your social media handle. You can offer incentives, such as running a monthly contest for the best photos taken at this spot. You can offer discounts or products as your prize.

5. Turn to Group Discounts and a Referral Program to Boost Salon Bookings

The thing is, people are more likely to try a service recommended by their peers and the people they trust. Why not leverage this fact and create a referral program?

Offer incentives for existing customers that bring new clients to your salon. For example, give them a 50% discount if they bring a friend. When executed properly, these types of referral programs can be very cost-effective, since technically your clients will promote your business without any effort and extra costs from you.

6. Bank on Influencer Marketing to Fuel Salon Sales

As with many other industries, influencer marketing, when done right, can be a very effective way to book more customer appointments for your salon.

The secret is to find the right beauty influencer that will align well with your brand. You want to look for those who have a genuine following. Also, the followers should be in your target market. Additionally, make sure to work with someone who consistently posts high-quality photos. Again, you are a visual business by nature, so you’d want your salon to look its best.

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Always Remember That Marketing Your Salon Is Job One

Above, we have covered six of the most effective salon marketing tips you can use to generate more customer appointments and grow your salon. However, keep in mind that you don’t need to do everything at once.

Embrace the fact that marketing your salon is and should be a long-term business. So monitor your progress and make adjustments when necessary to suit your specific clientele and location better.

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